Inside Aspen’s St. Regis Snow Polo Weekend

Prince Harry scored 4 targets. Followers, which included Colman Domingo, Goldie Hawn, and Mariah Carey, cheered him from a heated V.I.P.  tents, whereas nibbling on king crab and jumbo shrimp.  Between durations, some acquired IV infusions from a wellness tent, whereas others danced to a DJ who spun pop hits, accompanied by a trumpet participant.

This was the St. Regis World Snow Polo Championship, an annual charity occasion that brings the wealthy and well-known to Aspen for 2 days of fierce competitors from one of the best snow polo gamers on the earth. Not like conventional polo, groups encompass three, not 4 gamers. And it’s performed on snow, moderately than grass.

Snow polo, which started at St. Moritz, was launched to Aspen about 15 years in the past and now serves as an unofficial kickoff for the winter season, bringing with it a whirlwind of cocktail receptions, dinners, celebrities and luxurious manufacturers.

Festivities started with a Dec. 16 welcoie social gathering on the Paradis Suite, a $10,000-a-night room positioned on the fifth flooring of St. Regis, which hosts the competitors. The suite was designed in collaboration with Hennessy and is called after one in all its most prestigious cognac blends, Paradis.

Shaun White, the gold medal snowboarder, gave a toast, whereas Kitty Jacob Astor II, the St. Regis’ Bernese Mountain canine, roamed across the palatial suite, which was tastefully furnished with wooden paneling, a marble bathtub, and a Steinway piano. Company staying within the suite may also ebook a $450-a-person dinner, the place every course — suppose caviar, duck, foie gras, and wagyu — is paired with Paradis.

Different occasions happened on the Snow Lodge, a seasonal pop-up on the St. Regis that’s operated by Jayma Cardoso, who based the Surf Lodge in Montauk. The lodge hosts après ski with bottle service and big-name DJs together with Carlita and BLOND:Ish (Diplo kicked off the inaugural social gathering that weekend with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tinx within the crowd.)

The lodge additionally contains the Jade Room, the place Zachary Weiss, the New York Metropolis-based influencer and socialite, hosted a “polo disco” on Day 1 of the competitors.  Company — who included Domingo, the Oscar-winning actress Mikey Madison, and the polo participant (and Ralph Lauren mannequin) Nacho Figueras—sampled caviar equipped by the Parisian restaurant Caviar Kaspia.

On the different finish of the courtyard, STAUD, the style model from Los Angeles, hosted a reception inside a luxurious yurt, the place a capsule assortment is on the market by the tip of January. White sabered a bottle of champagne contained in the yurt, which earned him cheers from the gang.

The wildest shenanigans have been reserved for Day 2, after the St. Regis polo workforce, captained by Figueras and together with his twin sons, Hilario and Artemio Figueras, beat Prince Harry and his Aspen Valley workforce.

Hennessy hosted a four-course dinner within the Paradis Suite, the place pianist Max Hammond serenaded the gang. Because the night time wore on, some migrated to Casa Tua, the members membership, which held a late-night karaoke social gathering, whereas others went to the W Lodge, the place just a few polo gamers have been trying to find shotskis.

The unofficial after-party happened on the Caribou Membership, the members-only membership in Aspen, the place polo gamers and their followers danced till the small hours of the night time. A minimum of one individual remarked it did not matter how late they stayed out, since solely half of the mountain was open due to the season’s early lack of snow.